Laura Kurella is an award-winning, self-syndicated food columnist, an award-winning Food Stylist, and the author of two cookbooks: Fabulous Desserts and Fabulous Tiny Bites and beverage. Her column, Vitality Cuisine, appears each Tuesday in the
...

Laura Kurella is an award-winning, self-syndicated food columnist, an award-winning Food Stylist, and the author of two cookbooks: Fabulous Desserts and Fabulous Tiny Bites and beverage. Her column, Vitality Cuisine, appears each Tuesday in the Sturgis Journal, and her Radio Recipe show can be heard Tuesday mornings at 7:15 am at WBETFM.com Questions or comments? Contact Laura at Laurakurella@yahoo.com.

Beans are beautiful and come with a bounty of fiber and protein and if you aren't careful when preparing, lots of gas and bloating, too!

By Laura Kurella

June 25, 2013
11:11 p.m.

QUIP: In my column this week, I offered some baked bean recipes, which immediately drew the comment, “Love beans, especially since they are a good source of fiber and protein but I hate the embarrassing gas and painful bloating they cause.”

TIP: Beans are a great source of protein and fiber and yes, they are notorious for causing abdominal bloating and intestinal gas.
This is due to oligosaccharides, which are complex sugars in beans that require special enzymes to be broken down and digested.
Since our bodies lack those enzymes, those complex sugars pass into our intestines where bacteria metabolize them, which, in turn produce gas.
That said, there are a few things that can be done to greatly reduce these undesirable sugars and the easiest is to simply soak those dried beans.
As a general rule of thumb, the longer you soak beans, the greater the amount of oligosaccharides will be dissolved into the soaking water. For example, if you soak the beans overnight, it can reduce 60% of those complex sugars.
To do so. Measure out the amount of beans you want to cook. Cover with water, remove any "floaters" then rinse well.
Transfer beans to a large bowl filled with 1-part beans to 4 parts of cold water.
Leave them soak overnight then discard soaking liquid, rinse and drain the beans a couple of times until the water runs clear then prepare as desired.
You can also shorten the soak time using this quick soaking method. Place rinsed beans in a saucepan, and add enough water to cover (water level should be at least 1 inch above the bean level). Cover with a lid and bring to a rolling boil for 2 minutes. Using a large spoon, skim off any white foam that forms on the surface. Remove saucepan from heat and leave the beans to soak for 1 hour.
Then place your soaked or pre-boiled beans in a large pan and add fresh cold water to cook your beans.
Make sure not to add salt or baking soda to beans until they are tender and cooked completely because sodium will prevent beans from softening.
Also, don’t add acidic ingredients like tomato, vinegar, wine or citrus juices, while the beans are cooking.
Adding fennel seeds, cumin seeds, a thin slice of fresh ginger, fresh cilantro or a bay leaf will help soften the beans too, which also will help make them more digestible,
When using canned beans, always drain and rinse the beans several times before cooking, otherwise your flatulence/indigestion problem will be worse.
Another trick is to eat yogurt, papaya, pineapple, garlic or B Vitamins prior to consuming beans. Yogurt offers a good source of friendly digestive bacteria; garlic and B Vitamins help digestion and papaya and pineapple contain digestive enzymes.